The second district made an important distinction between disability discrimination and failure to provide reasonable accommodations in Jensen v. Wells Fargo Bank 85 Cal.App.4th 245 (2000). In that decision, the court noted that the elements of a failure to accommodate claim are similar to the elements of disability discrimination under…
A new municipal law has been enacted by San Francisco in 2007, under which all employers must provide paid sick leave to each employee (including temporary and part-time employees) who performs work in San Francisco. This “San Francisco Paid Sick Leave” began to accrue on February 5, 2007 for employees…
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act basically defines two categories of disability: mental disability and physical disability. Each category contains its own specific definitions. In addition, under FEHA, an employee with a “medical condition” which is not quite considered a disability is also entitled to a reasonable accommodation. The…
It is common for an employee who is subjected to discriminatory conduct or harassment at workplace in California to be afraid to complain about the harasser to his superiors for fear of retaliation and losing a job. However, an aggrieved employee simply has nothing to gain by keeping quiet. In…
One exemption from overtime compensation under Fair Labor Standards Act is known as the “Outside Salesperson Exemption.” This exemption permits an employer to not pay overtime as otherwise required under California law, but only if a particular worker (a) has the primary duty of (a) making “sales” or (b) obtaining…
If you are an employer who has employees working at the cash register or in any other position where they exchange merchandise or services for money, due to a common human error, these employees will make mistakes and will end up with cash shortages once in a while by not…
California Family Rights Act (CFRA), an equivalent of the federal FMLA legislation, allows qualifying employees to take up to 12 weeks of time off work when suffering from serious medical condition. Generally, and employer does not have to trust the employee’s word that he or she is or has been…
California Labor Code section 515.5 defines who qualifies for a computer/technology professional exemption from overtime compensation. There are three main requirements: (1) the employee must be doing work that is “intellectual or creative” and it should require “discretion and independent judgment,” which requires more than just deciding which procedures to…
California statutes prohibiting retaliation bar termination of (or other adverse employment action against) employees asserting their legally protected rights, exercising political affiliations, opposing unlawful discrimination at workplace, or seeking statutory redress (such as investigation of discrimination, harassment, etc.) To show retaliation under California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), an…
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) provides a non-exhaustive list of possible accommodations that an employer may consider to accommodate a qualified disability or medical condition of an employee. These typical reasonable accommodations include, but are not limited to: • Making facilities accessible to and usable by disabled…